What to do around Bangkok

Floating market fun

Fancy Bangkok but don’t know where to start? Want to take the kids but finding it overwhelming to go to a huge city in Asia? This is your guide…..It is definately more a first-timers guide, its not too in depth but will give you an overview on each place.

The green lung of Bangkok

Ok so I will start with the Jewel in the crown, my favourite place in the whole world, the steamy, sweaty, busy, enchanting, incredibly tasty, swallow you up and spit-you-back-out sprawling metropolis that is Bangkok. I know you are thinking; Ok Bex we get it you like BK chill your beans………But I feel everyone has a purpose in life and one of mine is to make as many people as I can fall in love with this glorious beast. I digress. So what can I do there I hear you say? Isn’t it just a handy stopover hub? Nope. Most people who spend 2-3 days here can’t really fall in love and some hate it as it is an assult on, well, your everything. I feel you need a week at least but I acknowledge schedules don’t always allow. In short if you love; shopping, night markets, food, cheap massages, rooftop cocktails, rooftop swimming, Sunday boozy brunches, hidden green spaces, temples and buddhist culture, awesome chinatowns and accessable day trips this one is for you. If you have kids there are a lot of opportunities to escape the heat, the malls are incredible (Kidzania anyone?) and the temples offer a slice of thai culture without having to do it intensely all day. The hotels are amazing value in Bangkok and I have so much to write here so will follow this up with a separate Bangkok post.

There are also loads of accessible day trips from Bangkok (or even better as 3 day trips!) and flight wise the possibilities are endless!

Ayutthaya

Ayutthaya-the old capital, the home of many amazing temples and the most incredible spun sugar pancakes……google these bad boys-I’ve never seen them anywhere else. You may have seen Wat Mahathat which is somewhat a thai poster girl, essentially a buddha head carved into a banyan tree. A great day out to see real thai life and learn about temples. You can take a local train or hire a private taxi, if you get the train you would need to get a grab/taxi around. It does get very hot as a lot of the temples aren’t in much shade so I would avoid hot season or go early in the day. It’s also cool to go and eat by the river, theres some amazing food places.

D Hostel on the river Kwai

Kanchanaburi-History buffs assemble…..Hop on the local train (tickets about £2) and head to the bridge over the river Kwai. Anyone familar with the death railway will know its tragic history. but theres also so much more to Kanchanaburi than that. There is tonnes of nature, so if you like hiking, rafting, natural outdoor spas (search Erawan waterfall for the most stunning, etheral springs). They also have some really lovely local villages. You can grab some amazing hostels for next to nothing, if you are travelling with kids they have private rooms (I paid £12 for a private in a gorgeous floating hostel last time). I would say you’d get more out of it if the kids are a little older as the river is pretty special so its best to stay on it and if your toddlers are crazy like mine they may try and vacate via the water….

The death railway

Damnoen Sadauk floating market-Definately one of the touristy places near bangkok and some say it has evolved to be purely for tourists now. I’m not usually into that sort of thing but I would actually say this is definately one for the thai bucketlist. The train market is nearby which is also pretty insane. I think for this one its a good idea to hire a local guide that will drive you as you would get more out of the experience if you have a local eye. (I visited with a thai friend so I had a great time) On memory it is about an hour away from Bangkok, maybe a little longer-the other option is you can hire a driver and just do the two stops alone. Kid friendly rating? I took my 4 month old and just lay him on the bottom of the boat :) I think its great for babes in arms and I would take my 3 and a half year old so I think not for wriggly toddlers but small babies and 3+ if they are reasonable with not jumping off low boats you are grand.

Thefloating market

The train market

Khao Yai National Park-One of my favourite places in thailand. One of the only places left you can see wild elephants (It’s definately not a given though-we didn’t manage last time). This area is the green heart of Thailand or that’s how I think of it (I believe a lot of the fruit and veg is grown here). There are vineyards, cute dairy farms, breathtaking views, amazing hikes, Golf resorts, very reasonable spa hotels this area for me is so underrated. To get from Bangkok you have a few options, private driver, local train, bus. You find some Songthaew (truck taxis) when you are there or you can arrange private transfers or if you are confident enough I would hire a car or a bike.

Beautiful views in Kao Yai National Park

Sunset cocktails at Kao Yai NP

Beaches near Bangkok………. Hua Hin-Once a sleepy fishing village this is a perfect weekender (or any 2 nights haha) from Bangkok. Again lots to see and way more than a beach this is where the Thai royals holiday so must be good!

Pattaya-Pattaya is an easy drive from Bangkok (just under 2 hours) and you can hire a driver for a really good price, our last trip cost about £60 each way but for a large people carrier taxi. The beach is ok, the hotels are really good and its family focussed. It’s definately busier and touristy with quite a big expat community.

Koh Samet

Koh Samet-Koh Samet is one of the closest (decent sized) islands to Bangkok. You can take a cab from BK and then hop on the small ferry for a couple of quid. It’s not overly developed so don’t expect 5* digs but if you want to see rustic island life and beach bungalows for chilling out its fab!

There are obviously loads more than just this but these are a few you could try.

Beyond Bangkok There are so many super easy and cheap flights from Bangkok. I won’t cover Thai beaches in this post as I will pop a separate one up on that but I feel the easiest, cheapest and quickest getaways are; Siem Reap (Cambodia-Angkor Wat) which is around 1 hour and usually you can grab tickets for around £30, Hanoi (Northern Vietnam) which is around 1 hour 50 mins and you should be able to get flights for about £40 and Chiang Mai (Northern Thailand) which is 1 hour and you should be able to get a ticket for £15-£20. All of these are perfect for a couple of days which with your week in Bangkok, your Bangkok trips and then a couple of these flights takes you up to about 3 weeks……I always say Asia needs time. I will post a comprehensive Bangkok guide but it seems overwhelming right now as theres so much I could talk about so thought this quick post is a good starter.

Chiang Mai

Anymore Bangkok lovers out there?